Myo Life
Myo Life is a podcast for bored, burned out dental hygienists (and myofunctional therapists) who are ready to work less, earn more, have total control of their calendar, enjoy geographic freedom and most of all - make a bigger impact for their patients - while ditching the long hours, constant aches and dreaded Monday's. You will learn simple and effective strategies and tools to start and grow your profitable myofunctional therapy practice. Make sure you subscribe so you don't miss a thing!
Myo Life
#13 3 Critical Decisions Every New Myofunctional Therapist Must Make
In this episode of the Myo Life Podcast, Carmen dives into three critical decisions that every new myofunctional therapist must make to build a thriving and profitable business. Whether you’re just starting or struggling to gain traction, these foundational choices will help you commit to long-term success, set boundaries for business growth, and develop a confident money mindset. Tune in for actionable insights that will set you up for sustainable success in the Myo world!
Hey, I'm Carmen and welcome to Mayo Life. That's short for my outrageous life, which is exactly the kind of life I get to live since I found the courage to ditch dental hygiene and build a life I'm bonkers about as a Mayo functional therapist and entrepreneur. Here you will find all the things Mayo business and how to build a life that you, too, are bonkers about. I'm very happy you're here. Shall we dive in. Hello, my friend, and welcome back to the Mayo Life Podcast, where we help burned out dental hygienists escape the grind, build a thriving myofunctional therapy business and create a life of freedom, impact and wealth. I am Carmen and I am super excited that today we are diving into three critical decisions that every new myofunctional therapist must make. So if you are just starting out in myo and you're feeling overwhelmed, this episode, my friend, is for you. And if you've been dabbling but you haven't gotten real traction, buckle up buttercup, because we're about to clear the fog.
Speaker 1:Before we dive in, I have a fun update. So I am recording this batch of episodes as Scott and I are preparing to move across the country. We have always wanted land and it was finally time for us to pursue our dreams. So here we are. I am recording in an empty room, since I do not have any other options, and we are just rolling with it, but I wanted to give you a heads up in case the audio is off a little bit. It's not going to have any effect on the goodness that you're going to get from this episode.
Speaker 1:So let's talk about those three critical decisions. The first one is to commit to the process. So here's the hard truth. Building a business isn't like field of dreams. The idea that if you build it they will come is an absolute lie. And just because you're learning from me and I built a business that was successful into the six figures my first full year that doesn't mean that that's going to be the case for you. I have students who struggle with this because they think, just because they're learning from me and just because they have built it, just because they have put out their shingle that says I'm a myofunctional therapist like everybody should come flocking. That is not the case. In fact, the reality is that most businesses take two to three years to turn a profit, and approximately 25% fail within their first year. What's even more staggering is that almost 66% of businesses don't make it past the 10-year mark. So what this says to you is that success is not instant and survival is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1:You have to commit to the long game. You don't just wake up one day and put myofunctional therapist on your Instagram bio and suddenly have a full client roster. You have to commit to showing up before clients show up for you. You have to give, give, give, give, give before you ever ask to take. This means marketing your services before you feel ready. This means networking and educating and consistently putting yourself out there, even when it feels like you're talking to nobody or you're talking to an empty room. Your commitment level will determine your success. You have to be all in, my friend. There is no half-assing your way into a thriving business. So decide right now if you're committed or if you're just interested, Because interested people dabble, they have a hobby, they have a jobby, Committed people go all in, they storm the island, they burn the boats, they don't have plan B. Okay. So decision one commit to the process.
Speaker 1:Decision number two, my friend, is to schedule your two-hour power block. So the biggest reason why most new myofunctional therapy businesses never get off the ground and never get profitable and never earn millions of dollars like my business has is because they don't block time to actually work on the business. They get stuck in the I'll get to it when I have time trap. But the spoiler alert is that life is always going to get in the business. They get stuck in the I'll get to it when I have time trap, but the spoiler alert is that life is always going to get in the way. But the thing is is it's not life getting in the way, you guys, it's. It's a boundary problem. It's you not setting boundaries. So the solution to that is to pick a two hour spot time slot every single day. Yes, Even when you don't feel like it, because consistency trumps motivation. Now, I already know, I already feel it. I know what you're thinking. Two hours a day, Carmen, I hardly have time to breathe, but here's the thing you make time for what matters. If you found a lovely yoga class or a climbing class or something that you wanted to go to, you would find a way to fit in those hours. So treat this power block like the non-negotiable game changer that it is. Also, this time is not for checking emails or playing around with Canva templates.
Speaker 1:Your power block should be intentional, revenue generating work. This means creating content that attracts clients, refining your process, following up with leads, doing things that are going to move the needle in your business. Now, if you are a human who has shiny squirrel syndrome, like I sometimes do, then I'm your gal to lead you out of that. Inside my programs, I help you identify what your essential priorities are. I help you figure out what you should be doing in those power blocks. Okay. But if you're doing it on your own two hours every day, that means you're accomplishing something every day. Now, decision kind of 2.5 is to actually stick to it. So put it on your calendar like a client appointment, because if you do not take it seriously, nobody else is going to. If you had a client booked, you wouldn't just cancel them because life got busy right. So treat your business the same way. Your success depends on your discipline and your actions, not your feelings. Okay. So the more you honor this, the faster that you will grow so super important. I still, to this day, have my power blocks and those are very focused on essential priorities which, like I said, I help you figure those out. But if you're doing it yourself, it's the things that you can measure that you're actually accomplishing something and they're going to. It's a revenue generating activity, basically, Okay.
Speaker 1:So decision number three is to check your money mindset. So let's talk about money blocks. Do you feel weird about charging for your services? Do you think that making a lot of money is selfish? Do you feel like you shouldn't be charging for premium rates? If so, my friend, that belief is what will keep you broke. So it's important that you understand that you are putting in a lot of time and effort to get your myofunctional therapy education and to get your business going, and you, um, you should be paid for that, okay.
Speaker 1:So one of the biggest mistakes that new myofunctional therapists make is charging what their competition charges. So stop basing your prices on somebody else's money fears. Okay, you do not know their financial situation, you don't know their experience level or even how profitable they are. You know nothing about them. So you want to make sure that your pricing is based on value, not comparison. Okay, there is no mayor of my old town. There is nobody who is raising their hand saying, well, you should only charge this. Okay, Everybody's situation is going to be different.
Speaker 1:The thing to remember is that you are providing life-changing therapy. You are helping people breathe better, sleep better and function better. Why should you not be compensated for that? The right clients will pay for results and if you keep undercharging, you will attract the bargain hunters who don't value your expertise. They don't do the work, they don't get results and they're going to be the hardest pain in the ass clients to work with. Not to mention if they don't get results, they aren't going to be, you know, raving about your services to other people who then send you referrals. That's free marketing. So if you have somebody who's not doing the work and not getting results, they're certainly not going to be telling somebody else about it.
Speaker 1:So think of it this way If you don't take your prices seriously, then why should your clients? Confidence in your worth translates into confidence in your business. People aren't just paying for your time. They're paying for your training and your expertise and the transformation that you provide. So it's really important to know and understand that you will be mirroring your money attitude towards the client. So the way that you feel about your prices is exactly how your potential clients are going to feel.
Speaker 1:If you hesitate, second guess or feel guilty about charging what you're worth, that energy transfers directly to your clients. If you believe that you're expensive, they will too. If you exude confidence in the value that you provide, they're going to see it as an investment and not an expense. If you go into an exam assuming that somebody can't afford your services, then you have shot yourself in the foot from the very beginning, because they're not going to believe that the investment is worth it either. Your pricing is a reflection of your belief in yourself. Charge accordingly.
Speaker 1:Now, of course, this is something that we take a deep dive inside the Profitable Pricing Lab, but in the meantime, I will tell you this If you have weird money stuff going on up here in your cabeza, I have homework for you. There's some books that I love. One is you Are a Badass at Making Money by Jen Sincero, and then Get Rich, Lucky Bitch by Denise Duffield Thomas. Get those books, read them, do the work, Because your money mindset is going to make or break your business. Okay, so let's recap Three critical decisions that every new therapist should make.
Speaker 1:Number one commit to the process. No more waiting for permission. Show up now. Okay, it's the long game. This is a marathon, not a sprint, my friend.
Speaker 1:Number two schedule your two hour power, block time. Block your business this time into your calendar. Put it on your calendar, keep it like an appointment. Make sure you do it every day. Figure out a way to do it every day. Okay, this is first priority, not last priority. And then last is check your money mindset. You are worthy of charging for your services period. Nobody tells you what the going rate is okay, so I'm going to get ready to land this plane. I want to know which of these decisions are hardest for you, so you can find me and let me know I am going to let you guys go. I hope you found that helpful. If you did, do me a favor, share this episode with a friend or colleague of yours who needs our help. This will help me get the podcast into the hands of more incredible people like you. That is it, my friend. I will be back soon for some more Mayo business goodness and in the meantime, keep building a life that you are bonkers about.